


Something to Believe In

by serenililly



Category: K-pop, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Blood, Doctor Kim Namjoon | RM, F/M, Fantasy, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Originally Posted on Tumblr, POV Third Person, Religion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-20
Updated: 2019-03-20
Packaged: 2019-11-25 23:07:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18172661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serenililly/pseuds/serenililly
Summary: The town priestess peddled only lies and fantasy, a profession Doctor Kim could never let himself respect. If only she would stop making his heart beat so fast.





	Something to Believe In

“I can see you there, good doctor,” she called out towards him in gentle warning. Her voice was unsteady, words rippling like disturbed waters and Namjoon’s well-practiced ears could hear the pain woven between them.

“Be still,” she followed up after a deep, shaky breath, pale fingers clutching at her clearly injured arm as she braced her shoulder against the base of a tall tree. “The creature bites.”

Aera, they called her. Well, those like Namjoon who didn’t attend the temple services she held throughout the week called her that anyway. Her followers simply called her Priestess, spending their time in her presence hanging on her every word as she made absurd promises of blessings from gods that simply couldn’t exist.

But even Namjoon couldn’t lie that there was something enchanting about her, the striking violet of her eyes drawing him in every time she turned her gaze in his direction, and the gentle wit of her words having left him lost in thought for more days than he’d care to admit.

In the beginning, he’d only spotted her in the village, running errands and visiting townsfolk like everyone else. He’d tried hard to ignore her presence though, no matter how tempting, as his faith in the sciences made him reject everything she stood for. But Aera was, if nothing else, charming. She was also a more than skilled apothecary, he’d found after visiting a patient and being highly impressed with the medicine she’d left for them.

So he willfully failed in his attempts to avoid her, giving in to the priestess’ kind smile, the one that sometimes made him wonder if he had a mild case of arrhythmia. Instead, she spent a few days a week with him at his office, almost as a makeshift nurse who brought comfort to his clients, partially as a skilled chemist who knew more about herbs and minerals than he ever knew one person could, and definitely as a friend. A somewhat delusional friend, but still a good friend that he enjoyed a glass of wine and a satisfying debate with now and again. And again. And again.

Namjoon set his travel bag at the foot of the tree nearest him, his spot at the lip of the forest somehow shrunken in comparison to the bizarre vision before him. Even as blooms of red and patches of brown dirt marred the white lace of her robes, Aera looked captivating, the vision of an imaginary ethereal being hurrying Namjoon’s heart, though he wanted desperately to tamp it down since it was getting slightly out of hand as of late.

But if Namjoon could wager, he was quite sure most of his staggered breath could be attributed to the towering creature just behind her.

The young girl that had been in the forest with the priestess mentioned that the pair had been accosted by bandits during their stroll through the trees. She’d mentioned Aera had sent her hurrying to the village for her own safety and that she might be hurt or in grave danger.

She had neglected to mention, however, that the priestess had been joined by a hell-only-knows how many meters tall, lizard-like creature with wings that currently had what Namjoon hoped was not a human arm poking out between it’s impressively-sized fangs.

“I’m here to help you, miss,” Namjoon spoke slowly, unsure how to handle a monster of this size and not completely believing what he was seeing in the first place. Wild boars and bucking horses had nothing on the beast resting on its enormous claws and still brushing tree tops with its back. Was this a spell? Did priestesses do spells? Namjoon shook his head to clear his thoughts, reasoning that whatever was happening was sure to be explained in a book he had overlooked somewhere. Perhaps in a lecture on hysteria.

“And I assure you, good doctor, I’m in need of it. But Seles is a little overprotective right now. Let her digest the bandits that caused this for a little longer.”

The creature  —  had she called it Seles?  — rippled its back like a stretching feline,  inky, black scales larger than his long-fingered hand and, he wagered, as strong as damascus, shimmering in the hot, midday sun. Positioned behind the priestess, it eyed Namjoon with caution, slurping up the remaining contents of its snack before focusing a measured, blood-red, cat-eyed slit on him.

He knelt into the grass at his feet slowly in an instinctual show of submission, not interested just yet in losing his life at the hands...or teeth of an unknown forest monster.

“Can you stand?” he asked across the patch of grass that served to distance them. “If you’ll come to me, perhaps she...he...it will be soothed by you making the first move.”

“A girl,” Aera responded, then groaned a little at the force of sitting up and away from her supportive tree.

“I’m sorry?” Namjoon responded.

“Seles is a female dragon,” she said calmly, glancing up with an almost loving gaze at the dark monster hovering high above her head.

“A dra-”

A voice, heavy with power and drenched in layers of the unknown rippled between the edges of time and existence. Namjoon could feel his sanity teetering on the precipice with each utterance, barely holding on as things he didn’t believe in anchored themselves to his mind and body.

_ I won’t hurt him. This human holds you in his heart. _

Shaking his head to quiet the ringing in his ears, Namjoon found his hand clutching at his breast, trails of fresh tears staining his cheeks. Dumbfounded by whatever had just taken place, he looked to Aera to confirm his madness, seeing that the priestess had at last stood from her spot on the ground, stance shaky. And on her face, peony pink lips held a sympathetic smile for him.

“I’m sorry, my poor doctor. She has that effect on us mortals the first time around.”

Namjoon scrambled to his feet as Aera began to stumble her way towards him. His shock overridden by years of emergency responses to injured patients, he scooped up his bag and hurried to her side, wiping tears from his eyes before meeting her halfway. She let herself fall forward into his chest, strands of her long, dark hair plastered in sweat against her forehead.

“What the hell happened?” he asked, both needing to know how to treat her and worried for her health, only just realizing how pale her face had become. Bleeding this much on a normal day was dangerous enough. But it was blazing hot today in their already usually warm village and he worried she might not be long for a sunstroke at this rate.

“Haeun and I were looking for berry patches in the shade when we were attacked,” Aera started, and Namjoon helped her back down onto the ground, leaning her against him in support as he began peeling down the bloodied sleeve of her dress to assess the damage. He sucked in air through his teeth and began pulling out supplies to treat the nasty wound at her back.

“I sent her running, hoping they would focus on me instead of chasing her. Then I fought and one of the bastards stabbed me.” Aera hissed as Namjoon worked, the sting of medicine welcome, but painful on her fresh cut. “They meant to sell me off, probably. To be quite honest, I was scared a pretty witless. I’m not sure if you know this, but getting stabbed hurts quite badly.”

Namjoon chuckled darkly at her sarcasm, brushing strands of her dark hair to one side of her neck as he bandaged her first wound and moved to the second. His usually unsteady hands only served him well when he focused on work, though he did admit the smooth pink across the skin of her back and neck of her skin, even brushed with blood was mildly distracting.

“But Seles was grazing nearby and heard my prayers. She came and made a meal of them. And then you came.” She hissed again at his attention on the second wound, leaning her forehead against his shoulder as if she had run out of energy from speaking.

A subtle blush spread across his cheeks and Namjoon was thankful her eyes were not on him, the words of the dragon moments ago finally catching up to him.

He held her in his heart? Namjoon shook his head to himself. Of course he did, she was a good friend. A dear friend.

“Seles, you can leave me with him,” Aera said, voice muffled as she spoke into Namjoon’s shoulder. But the beast seemed to perk up at her words anyway. “The bastards have long since settled into your belly and the good doctor will take care of me.”

_ As you will, little one. _

With one subtle nod of its enormous head the creature took wing, blowing stray leaves and branches behind as it flew up into the skies with a grace unheard of for a creature so large and was gone before Namjoon could register its path. Yet he had seen it with his own eyes. Dragons, a fairy tale myth told by nannies to adventurous little boys, real and flying away in front of him.

“I know it must be a shock for you. She came to me one day while I prayed at the edge of the forest. There was nothing in the temple handbook about a guardian dragon, but,” Aera shrugged and then winced from the accidental pain. “Uggh...anyway, now I have one. Thankfully, or I might’ve been sold at an auction miles from here by now.”

Namjoon felt uneasy after he’d left her at the temple that night, heading back towards his house in town. He found himself at her door the following morning, obviously only to check on her injuries. And again that evening, just to make sure she was staying hydrated. He found himself spending more time with her each day after as well, at the temple, or his office, at the inn for a drink, or even when she wandered the forest and prayed. Just to make sure she was safe, he told himself each time. He was worried for her after her ordeal, that was all.

Namjoon had never been a religious man. He believed in science, simple facts, and explicable proof. Still, the more time he spent with Aera, the more he understood the faith people put in the temple, laying mounds of golden wheat and good cuts of meat into the altar’s flames in exchange for good fortune and happiness. The more he was able to accept her beliefs and admire her dedication, to appreciate the guidance and hope she offered those that sought her out.

And it wasn’t until weeks had passed, while he was tending to the nasty cough of one of the village elderly, that he realized he’d fallen completely in love with her.

“Where is your little nurse today?” the old woman muttered between her hacking. “She sure does help you out a lot.”

Namjoon poured out the mixture of cough medicine from his mortar into a small vial, clutching tighter to avoid dropping it at the mention of his “little nurse”.

“Ah, she is a priestess first, I’m afraid,” he answered calmly. “She’s tending to patrons at the temple. But I do think this medicine will make you feel a lot better, even in her absence.”

Another round of coughs and he handed over the serum, hoping it was the right mixture to settle the rattling of her lungs.

“I know you fancy that woman, but you know she can’t marry. She can’t give you children or even satisfy your needs what with her profession. You’d best look elsewhere, medicine man.” The woman upturned the herbal mix, sputtering a little at the unpleasant flavor before heaving herself from her seat, services rendered. “I’ll introduce you to my granddaughter sometime, dear. She would make a fine wife for a doctor.”

Long after his last patient had left that day, Namjoon found himself unable to leave his office as the evening crawled into late night, chewing his lip to hell over the old crone’s words and desperately trying to understand why they had opened an enormous hole somewhere inside his chest.

A gentle knock at the door stirred him from his thoughts and, after tripping only slightly over a stray book, he made his way to the entrance to find the very one muddying his thoughts standing in his doorway.

“Are you busy? It’s late and I didn’t see you after tonight’s service,” Aera asked curiously, lifting herself onto her toes in a pointless effort to see past his broad shoulders. He gave her a tight-lipped smile and a quiet ‘no’, trying his hardest to hide his deflated feelings.

A warm breeze trickled past him through the doorway, the tropical heat of summer wafting across the threshold and carrying her scent with it, brushed with lilac and vanilla and causing the aching in his chest to grow that much more.

Aera was practically bouncing in front of him, taking a furtive glance behind her before stepping a little closer to him and whispering.

“I want to take you somewhere,” she said, her eyes glittering with excitement. Namjoon leaned against the frame of his door, hyper-aware of her closeness to him and trying to force himself back to the usual comfort he felt in her presence.

“Alright. Where?” he asked, forcing nonchalance.

“A place where you can stand on fish and build castles with water,” she said ominously, before hurriedly turning on her heel and heading off towards the temple, waving an encouraging hand behind her for him to join.

“W..wait, what?” He fumbled behind, closing up his office and running off after her, his long legs making short work of the distance, but her words still leaving him behind in confusion.

She giggled excitedly, refusing to answer, cheeks flushed as she lifted her skirts and hurried her step towards the thick woods just behind the temple.

Seles was there waiting, barely visible in the dark of night save for her crimson eyes focusing on the pair as they came into view. Aera hurried to stand beside the creature, a grin plastered across her face as she waved him forward. Namjoon hesitated, still shaken from his first encounter with the creature and no more interested in becoming a midnight snack.

“Oh, don’t be afraid. Seles likes you,” Aera said warmly.

_ Like is a strong word, little one. _

Aera laughed and gave Namjoon a wink before hoisting herself up onto the beasts wing and reaching out a hand to help him follow.

“It’s safe, I promise. Hurry, I want to make it while there’s daylight.”

It wasn’t that Namjoon had never imagined taking Aera by the hips and holding her close to his body. On the contrary, that idea was more than pleasant. However, doing so while flying above the clouds at speeds he was sure humans were never meant to go was never a part of his daydreams.

Shivers rippled down his spine as the temperature steadily dropped the further they flew from their home, cold air slicing through his breezy shirt and pants as Seles finally sought fit to descend. True to her word, the sun was again high in the sky, which was shocking enough.

But even more so was the ground they were heading towards, a blanket of sparkling white, dotted by small patches of deep green.

The dragon landed gracefully and Aera patted Namjoon’s hand, signaling that he should probably let her go. He released his grip, turning his head in awe at the new landscape. The blanket of white surrounded them completely, the green he recognized as some type of trees he had never seen, dusted with the same powder as the earth.

Aera slid down from Seles’ back carefully, making a soft crunch as she landed on the ground below. She urged him to follow, after which he felt a gentle bucking from Seles that had him hurrying down to what he hoped was safer territory.

“Shit!” he cursed as he landed, skin almost burnt by the cold sting of the substance below him. Aera only giggled in response.

“You get used to it. Seles said it’s called snow and it happens in places colder than our home.” She spread her arms, breath leaving wisps of smoke in the air. “Isn’t it beautiful?”

They spent the day exploring and shivering, walking upon a solid lake that sure enough Namjoon could see fish darting about several feet beneath them. Until he fell on his arse and Aera helped him slide back to the snow, her laughter ringing in the air all the while.

His body kept shaking, but watching Aera play around in the freezing, white powder was warming him just enough from the inside to withstand the cold. He had never seen her so excited, her cheeks red and her violet eyes crinkling at the edges as she danced around with him making shapes in the snow.

She scooped a little of it up, rolling it between her hands and he looked on curiously until he felt the ball explode against his shoulder and heard Aera burst into laughter, mischievously scooping another round of ammunition into her hands.

“What kind of priestess-” Namjoon started in shock, reaching down and grabbing up some of the chilly substance between his much larger hands, servicing for a much larger ball.

She shrieked a wild giggle, dropping her weapon and taking off running, and Namjoon dropped his own, running after her and quickly hot on her heels. Aera stumbled a little in the heavy snow, the hem of her dress tripping her feet and slowing her down just enough to let Namjoon catch up to her. His hands swung over her hips, pulling her back to him, the force landing them both into the freezing white powder.

But Namjoon could hardly feel the cold biting into his skin or hear the deafening thumps as his heart threatened to exit his chest. He could only feel her body beneath him, the blush of her cheeks, the white mist in the air escaping from between deep pink of her lips calling out to him, begging his attention. Then suddenly coming towards him as the priestess headed off his intentions, settling her lips against his.

Namjoon’s hand was in her hair, mixing wet snow with deep, ebony strands until he was on his back, her body draped across his as they explored secrets beyond words hidden between each others lips and his heart was filled again, the old woman’s words buried beneath the feel of Aera’s body pressed tightly against him.

_ A storm is on the horizon, little ones. Mate at home where you won’t freeze to death. _

Aera’s eyes snapped open at the dragon’s words, and she hurried to her feet, staring out across the sky at the darkening clouds. Namjoon stood next to her, dusting snow from his body and unable to hold back his shivering any further.

“I’m so ready to be back in the heat,” he mumbled.

In no time, Seles had spirited them back to their tropical village, another setting sun greeting them when she left them in the forest. Namjoon made to leave her at the temple as always, planning to hurry home and change from his freezing, wet clothes. But Aera’s hesitation gave him pause, her fingers catching on the hem of his shirt, her wet, wind-whipped hair shuffling about her shoulders in the warm night breeze.

Her eyes said what she wouldn’t, but Namjoon understood all the same, hoping she could see the same feelings in his own. Wordlessly, he took her hand, and they both hurried back into town, arriving at Namjoon’s home just as night fell, but not sleeping until the moon was far past high in the sky.

Aera was awakened by a loud noise, blinking at her surroundings and not quite remembering her temple quarters looking this way. She sat up, slightly confused until she looked over and saw Namjoon’s bare chest as he sat up next to her.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.” Namjoon sniffled noisily next to her, rubbing the back of his hand across his reddened nose before shaking out another loud sneeze. “I think those cold, wet clothes got under my skin. I don’t feel too well.”

Aera glanced over at the floor of the bedroom, where the now dry clothes he was speaking of had made their home for the night. She pressed a hand to his forehead, then a light kiss before nudging his shoulders back into the bed to lie down.

Slipping from beneath his sheets, she stepped back into her dress and settled herself into his kitchen, searching out his mortar and pestle and the ingredients for something to soothe the sickness sure to come to his body soon.

She heard him after a short while, quietly taking a seat at the table behind her.

“Ah, you should stay in bed,” she chided. “Isn’t that what you would tell your sick patients? This is my fault for taking you to that freezing place. I don’t want you to feel worse.”

Namjoon watched her tense shoulders, worrying that she felt guilty about more than just his runny nose. The old woman’s words came back to him, mostly disproven, but Namjoon wasn’t sure at what cost. He watched Aera work, mixing together something that, in her brilliance, he was sure would have him feeling better in no time. And even if it didn’t, he didn’t regret any part of it. Only...

“So…” he started, searching his heart for the courage to ask. He ran a nervous hand through the golden strands of his hair. “...Priestesses can’t marry, right?”

The pestle went idle, Aera’s fingers pausing in her work on the fragrant herbs. She took a slow half-turn towards his spot at the oaken table, trailing the deep violet of her eyes up to meet the warm amber of his. A familiar wrinkle was pressed into his forehead, the weight of his question hanging across the width of his face as his teeth sank nervously into his bottom lip.

Her lips took on a hesitant smile as warm tears threatened to prick the corners of her eyes, filling out her voice with the comforting feelings she’d had since meeting the good doctor.

“We can...”


End file.
